Norfolk Shootings Leave Sailor, Then Civilian Dead At Naval Base

Navy security forces shot and killed a civilian at the Norfolk Naval Station in Virginia on Monday night after an earlier shooting left a sailor dead aboard the destroyer USS Mahan.

Navy officials said the civilian had authority to be on the base but declined to give any additional information on his status, according to the Virginian-Pilot. The identities of the civilian and the sailor, both described as males, have not been released by the Navy.

The fatal shootings come six months after 12 civilians workers were killed by a former Navy reservist at the Washington Navy Yard. The gunman was identified as a contractor at the facility.

Terri Davis, a Navy spokeswoman, told the newspaper that Monday's incident happened about 11:20 p.m. He declined to characterize the confrontation between the civilian and Navy security forces.

"That's part of the investigation," said Davis.

The base was locked down for 45 minutes after the shooting but all but Pier 1 has returned to normal operations, WVEC-TV reported.

"We will find out what happened and we will prevent that from happening again," Adm. Bill Gortney, the head of Fleet Forces Command in Norfolk, told attendees at an energy workshop on base Tuesday morning, the Virginian-Pilot reported

Monday's shooting also comes about a month after the Navy held anti-terrorism and force protection exercises on U.S. bases, including an active-shooter drill at Norfolk, according to The Associated Press.

Each base entrance is guarded, and motorists must present identification, the AP reported Handheld ID scanners were implemented this year at Navy bases in the region, including the Norfolk station for extra security.

Norfolk Naval Station is the largest naval base in the world, with 46,000 military members and 21,000 civilian worker on 6,000 acres, according to The New York Times. The base is the home port to some 64 ships.

The USS Mahan has a crew of nearly 300 and had returned to Norfolk after a deployment of more than eight months on the water, including a position in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, the AP reported.